Somewhere In Chaos
by AnotherUnusualParadox
Summary: There was something about her that he couldn't quite grasp, but desperately wanted to. Her innocence after such a traumatic experience, her laugh in even the direst of situations, and her ears that were the most expressive part of her body. All of this stirred things in him he didn't want to acknowledge. (Knux x Bunnie shipfic for pennythelynx).
1. Prologue

**Somewhere In Chaos:**

 **Author's Note I:** This fanfic is set in a unique AU that combines elements of the games, Archie comics, and Sonic SatAM tv show. For continuity purposes, the story begins shortly after the events of Sonic 3 and Sonic  & Knuckles and has the plot device between Knuckles and Sally in it. I also included a few ideas from the t.v. show, like Sonic's personality for instance. Further, it's important to note that the ending of the game and the beginning of this fic has a few inconsistancies and major changes (all done for story purposes and intentional).

Now, I'd also like to note that this is a shipfic requested of me from a reader named _pennythelynx_. I have another fic similiar to this titled "The Mobian Experience" which is rated M and features the unique pairing of Knuckles the Echidna and Nicole the Holo-Lynx. Feel free to check it out from my profile, it's considered a good read and also holds the distinction of being the first such shipfic of its kind.

Lastly, on the rating of this particular fic. The T-Rating is most likely only temporary. I will try and keep it in this range, but be forewarned that the rating may change later, depending on how my story progresses.

Other than that, enjoy this bittersweet/fluffy fanfic.

* * *

 **Prologue:**

"He... he tricked me..." whispered Knuckles, unable to believe the sudden turn of events. The man who had claimed that the blue intruder was out to steal his emerald had betrayed him and stole it for himself. To add insult to injury (or injury to insult as he would've put it), the obese man electrocuted him and left the echidna on the quickly sinking island. He lay there, staring up at the open hole in the ceiling where the one who called himself "Eggman" had escaped with his sworn duty.

The blue hedgehog who had bested him, leaned over the defeated echidna. "You alright?"

Knuckles forced the surprise off his face and curled his lip in a fierce snarl. "I'm fine." He stood up and winced as pain lanced through his body. "If that fat bastard thinks he can take my emerald with no repercussions, then he's **dead** wrong." He pushed past the blue one and his twin-tailed friend. Moving past the altar where the Master Emerald had rested for eons up until Eggman stole it just moments ago. "C'mon, I'll show you they way out," he spoke softly, gesturing with his hand for the other two to follow him.

Flipping a small lever in the shape of a sharp stone, Knuckles waited as a portion of the stone wall shifted and fell downards, exposing a hidden passage. Without another word, the echidna bolted forward down the hall and out of sight. Sonic and Tails exchanged a silent look and then sprinted down the opening Knuckles had disappeared into.

* * * _Aboard the Death Egg_ * * *

Sonic faced the massive robot that Eggman had introduced as the Kyodai Eggman Robo. The battle had been tough, but with fast reflexes and the additional boost from the handy Chaos Emeralds, Sonic stood victorious. Tails was still somewhere on Angel Island and Knuckles had disappeared as soon as he and Sonic arrived on the Death Egg. Taking a step towards the battered machine, Sonic watched cautiously for any sign of movement.

At that moment, Knuckles dropped in. Literally. "Huh, looks like I missed the party," observed Knuckles, stepping over casually towards Sonic.

Sonic tore his gaze away from the death machine long enough to give the echidna a quick glance. "Looks like it, doesn't it? What took you so long anyways?"

Knuckles frowned. "It wasn't as easy to navigate as I thought it would be. In any case," he turned away from Sonic and approached the machine even closer than Sonic dared, "It's time for me to take back what's rightfully mine." With a soft grunt, Knuckles reared back his fist and punched straight through the sheet metal to expose the Master Emerald, unharmed. A mere second later, the giant robot suit hissed and Sonic's eyes widened. "Knuckles! Get back!"

He was too late. The machine fell apart and Eggman emerged in his personal escape craft. Smashing into Knuckles and knocking him down, the pod fled the crumbling room with the Master Emerald in tow. Knuckles growled and immediately jumped to his feet. "Not this time!" he growled, taking off after the craft even faster than Sonic could have.

Eggman glanced over his shoulder. "It's that annoying echidna again," he muttered, switching the gear on the craft to a faster speed setting.

He still didn't get far before Knuckles leapt forward and smashed what he swore to protect. There was an ear-splitting crash as the emerald splintered into pieces. Eggman winced and looked down. The shards slipped through his grappling claw and disappeared into the vacuum of space. "Gah! Look at what you've done, you fool!" The human gave a frustrated huff and disappeared into the ceiling, via a convenient escape hatch.

Sonic caught up with the echidna. "Hey, look, man. This place is gonna blow soon and we gotta get out of here."

Knuckles nodded. "Fine. The emerald's safe for now anyways."

Wordlessly, the pair headed out of the room with the busted Kyodai, to search for a possible exit.

* * * _Back on Angel Island_ * * *

With the Death Egg destroyed, Knuckles and Sonic had caught a ride on Tails's biplane back to the island. Which somehow managed to stay afloat like a giant piece of cork, but made of rock. Knuckles theorized it was air pockets within the island, although he also hinted that the damage Sonic and Tails did to the interior may have a caused a leak. Thus, he doubted the island would stay on the surface for much longer. Glancing once more over the island he had called home for nearly his entire life, Knuckles's face was expressionless but his violet-colored eyes suggested he was more sorrowful than he let on. It was his duty to protect the emerald and he had failed.

Swallowing down any thoughts of sadness, Knuckles turned his to his most recent allies. "I guess I was wrong about the two of you. Sorry."

Sonic waved a dismissive hand. "Don't worry about it. It's not like you had any way of knowing who we were. If it had been me, I probably would've done the same thing you did."

Knuckles acknowledged the hedgehog's acceptance of his apology with a slight nod.

"So what are you going to do know?" asked Tails, climbing down from the Tornado.

"Look for the pieces of the Master Emerald and put it back together, of course," answered Knuckles.

Sonic looked skeptical. "Really? How are going to do that?"

Knuckles gazed back evenly at the hedgehog. "I'm the guardian. It's my responsibility."

"Are they here on the island?"

"No. I would sense them if any were."

Sonic was about to inquire about how Knuckles could "sense" pieces of a magic gem, but was interrupted by Tails. "We should take you to meet Aunt Sally back on the mainland. She'll know what to do."

Knuckles flinched noticably when the fox said the phrase "Aunt Sally". "Who?" he asked, wanting to make sure he heard the young fox properly.

"Aunt Sally. She's our leader. She's also really smart and nice too."

"Would this 'Aunt' Sally happen to be princess too?"

Sonic raised an eyeridge. "Yeah. She is. How did you know that?"

Knuckles ignored him and turned away for a moment, as if processing this bit of information. At length, he turned back to the two confused heroes. "Very well, take me to this princess."

Sonic crossed his arms. "Hold up there, hotshot. I'm not sure that's such a goood idea. After all, you just met us and intitally treated us like intruders."

"That's because you were," countered the echidna. "And now I wish to parley with your leader."

Tails poked Sonic's elbow. The hedgehog looked down. "I think he's on our side now. Besides, doesn't he deserve a second-chance? You say everybody does, even Eggman."

Sonic frowned and then let out a defeated sigh. "Alright, fine. We'll take you to her, **but** ," he paused, "at the first sign of treachery and I'll deal with you personally. Understood?"

Knuckles nodded.

"Okay then, Tails, start up the Tornado and take us back to the base."

"Right away, Sonic!"

Knuckles stepped up onto the left wing of the biplane while Sonic took the right. He let his gaze linger over his home once more. It had been over a decade since he's seen her last. Could she really be the Sally he once knew? More importantly, would she remember him?

* * *

 **Author's Note II:** Okay, that was the prologue for Somewhere In Chaos. My apologies if it's short and jumps over a lot of action, but I just wanted to set up the story rather than describe all the action in it. So yeah, it has elements of Sonic 3 and Sonic  & Knuckles in it as well as a plot device used in the Archie Comics. In any case, Chapter One should be up soon and I'll be working on this as I get the opportunity. And yes, it's Knux x Bunnie. There's also a little SonAlly and KnuxAlly in between. You'll see.

Until then,

~TheEpicTales


	2. Chapter 1

**Somewhere In Chaos:**

 **Author's Note I:** Alright Chapter 1 is up! A joyous reunion, new faces, and fresh start for our hero, Knuckles the Echidna. Enjoy.

* * *

 **Chapter 1:**

A motley group of eight individuals gazed upwards as they watched the Death Egg still in orbit. The massive, moon-like structure shuddered as if hit with a massive force for a brief second. And then it was perfectly still. A young rabbit hid her face in her mother's skirt while a pink hedgehog stood beside them, anxiously nibbling her fingertips. Further down the line, a coyote, cybernetic rabbit, and purple walrus all stared up at the threatening presence in the sky, too fearful to even breath. The only one that didn't look worried was a female, brown chipmunk in simple jean jacket and blue rubber boots. The last one's face was set in an expression of grim determination. 'C'mon, Sonic. You have to win this one...' she thought solemnly, sparing a moment's glance at her allies before resuming her vigil. Another breathless moment went by before the entire left side of the object blew apart in a violent explosion. They couldn't feel the force of the explosion, but they heard the soft, distant sound of a thunderous boom. And then, at last, the metal orb slowly began to descend once more. At this distance, the fall seemed little more than a crawl, but the chipmunk easily knew that the actual velocity was actually quite rapid. He did it. They were successful, but... Sally bit back a sudden stab of icy fear in her chest for the hedgehog and fox she had inadvertedly sent on the essential suicide mission.

Keeping a straight face as best she could, despite her immediate relief and stronger apprehension in her gut, the chipmunk turned to her compatriots. "They did it, team. And it looks like they did enough damage to it. I doubt Eggman will be able to repair it any time soon."

The pink hedgehog spoke up. "But what about Sonic and Tails? Did they make it out? Are they alright?"

Sally took a steadying breath. "Relax, Amy. You're just as worried about them as I am, but we all know Sonic. I'm sure he's okay. Tails too. Even so, we should recognize that this mission was perhaps the most dangerous they've had thus far. So let us be thankful when they return safe and sound. Antoine," she continued, turning towards the coyote, who straightened uo when she faced him. "I want you to keep a look-out for our heroes. Let me know as soon as they arrive."

"Yes, ma'am!" he agreed, in a high-pitched French accent. "Right away!"

"What are ya going ta do?" asked the rabbit beside him.

"I'll be taking a look at our next target. After this defeat, Eggman will be weak, so now is a perfect opportunity to strike him where it'll hurt the most."

The other mobians shared questioning glances. They didn't doubt Sally's tactical abilities, but was she implying that she was going to send Sonic and Tails out on another mission as soon as they got back?

Sally departed and headed inside the large hill where the Freedom Fighters based their operations out of, leaving the fiery ball of glistening metal to fall back into the distant horizon.

* * * _A few hours later_ * * *

Sally looked up from her battle plans when a furtive knock came from the door to her private quarters. "Yes?"

"I-it's me, Princess," said Antoine's muffled voice on the other side of the door. "Sonic and Tails are back."

"Great, send them in please."

There was a hesitant pause on the other side of the wooden barrier. "Er, they've also brought someone with them."

Sally frowned. "Eggman?"

"N-no. An islander, ma'am. He wants to meet with you. I told him to-"

Antoine broke off midsentence when the door to Sally's room opened, revealing the chipmunk princess herself. "What is his name?"

Antoine licked his lips nervously. "Er, I didn't ask, b-but he's, er, kind of tall and red. Sonic doesn't seem too happy with him being here either."

'That could only be...' thought Sally. "Take me to him," she commanded, falling in step behind the coyote.

The two mobians walked down the hall at brisk pace with Antoine trying to keep his nervous shaking in check, but failing. Rounding the corner, they quickly passed the last twenty feet of the hall and into the main commons area. Sally quickly glanced around at the assembled mobians and quickly identified faces. Sonic, Bunnie, Cream, Rotor, Tails, Vanilla... and finally settled on the red echidna in the center of the room with his hands held firmly against his sides while the otehrs stared at him.

The echidna didn't notice her right away and appeared to be looking around the room with narrowed, suspicious eyes. Sally grinned despite herself. It was the perfect opportunity to surprise him. "Well, well, Mr. Knuckles, Guardian of the Master Emerald. It's been too long since we last met," she greeted as Antoine ducked out of her way.

The echidna made a start and then stared at Sally across the room with wide eyes. "It's... it's really you then..." he murmured, barely loud enough for others in the room to hear.

"Is that all you have to say after all these years, Knux?"

The echidna smiled warmly for the first time in several years. "Sally... It's great to see you. You've grown up too," he noticed, giving her quick look over.

"You've grown yourself," replied Sally, bridging the distance between them in quick, fluid strides.

"Wait. Hold up," interrupted Sonic, holding up his hands as he glanced between Sally and Knuckles. "You two know each other?"

Knuckles nodded slowly. "Once upon a time."

Hesitantly, the echidna held a hand out towards his old childhood friend. Sally shook her head and threw her arms around him in a tight embrace. "It's been too long for a simple handshake, my friend."

Knuckles looked slightly uncomfortable for an instant and then slowly, unsurely returned the soft cuddle. He had to admit that it felt... right. If a little awkward.

After another moment, Sally gradually released Knuckles, but remained close to him. At that moment, the rabbit with metal limbs spoke up. "So, how do y'all know each other?" she asked, with her ears skewed in confusion.

"Knuckles?" asked Sally, looking up at the echidna, "do want to take this one?"

Knuckles shrugged. "Okay. Well, Sally and I used to be friends, back when my father was Guardian and Sally's father was the King of Acorn. Every couple of weeks, her father would visit our island to speak with mine. Sometimes, he would bring Sally here along and her older brother too. I even met the Queen at one point. But, we would spend most of the day playing and whatnot." He paused and looked at Sally. "As far as I was concerned Sally was my only friend in the whole world." He turned his gaze back to the crowd of mobians. "It's a long and boring story, but the point is, one day, she just stopped coming. I didn't see her for well over a decade. Up until now, in fact. Speaking of which," he turned his attention once more to Sally. "Why did you stop coming? It's one question I've never been able to answer..."

Sally bowed her head solemnly. "Believe me, Knuckles, it wasn't by choice. I take it you've met our 'friend' Eggman?"

Knuckles nodded with a grim face. "Yeah. Who is he and what does he want with my emerald?"

Sally sighed. "It's going to take a long time to explain everything in detail. But I'm sure you and Sonic have had one heck of a day, so we can talk in the morning. Amy," she called towards the pink hedgehog.

"Yeah, Sally?"

"Show our guest to a spare room."

"Of course, o' fearless leader!"

Knuckles eyed the hedgehog as she approached. She looked young, maybe fourteen, and very bubbly. He tore his eyes away from the one they called Amy and back to Sally. "Thank you, Sally."

"Don't worry about it. We have a lot to catch up on anyways."

"C'mon, Red! This way," piped up Amy, tugging Knuckles's arm until he reluctantly followed her into the hallway.

Once they left, Sonic stepped up beside Sally. "So... you guys have some kind of history."

"Yes, Sonic. I'm glad you've been paying attention after all."

Sonic folded his arms. "Uh-huh. So, what's with this whole 'Guardian' thing? What's he guarding?"

Sally gave Sonic an amused smile. "Did you not notice the giant emerald?"

Sonic flushed. "A big gem? Is that it?"

Sally shook her head. "The Master Emerald isn't any normal gem, Sonic. The power of the Chaos Emeralds you use so often is actually governed by that gem that Knuckles guards. The Master Emerald is the fountain of power from which all Chaos Emeralds receive theirs."

Sonic looked a little confused.

Sally clapped him on the back. "It's alright if you don't understand. Knuckles can explain it better than I can." She guided him down the hall. "In the meantime, I suggest you get some rest. We've got to prepare for another raid early tomorrow."

Sonic stopped short. "Wait. Another one? Already? Tails and I just got back!"

Sally halted midstride and looked at the hedgehog. "I'm aware of that Sonic, but we've still got to strike Eggman when he's weakest. Plus, I'm not quite finished with the plans yet. All we need to do tomorrow is get the equipment repaired and ready."

Sonic resumed his walk, although his face still didn't look happy.

Sally joined him. "It's also a good thing you brought Knuckles back with you. We can use him in the upcoming raid."

"That's another thing," began Sonic, "just how close are the two of you?"

Sally stared at Sonic. "We were friends once and I see no reason why that should change. Why?" She paused as her face lit up and a teasing smile crossed her lips. "Wait a minute. I think you're jealous."

Sonic's face morphed into one of embarrassment. "What?! No way!"

Sally flicked his nose playfully. "Denial only proves your guilt."

"Whatever, Princess. I'm gonna crash," Sonic said dismissively, although thoroughly flustered. Without giving her another opportunity to tease him further, Sonic sped down the hall to his own room. Sally stared after him for a moment in amusement before disappearing in her own quarters.

* * * _Knuckles and Amy_ * * *

While Sonic and Sally were discussing the inclusion of Knuckles, the echidna and his escort was heading for the next spare room in the dorm hallway. "So, you're name is Knuckles, then?"

Knuckles gave her a sidelong glance. "Did you figure that out yourself?"

"Is it because you have those pointy things on your hands?"

Knuckles sighed heavily. "No. Well, maybe. I think it's because my clan is the Knuckles Clan."

"So your clan is named after you?"

Knuckles closed his eyes, trying desperately to not lose his temper. "That's not how it works."

"Oh. So you and Sally are friends then?"

Knuckles actually hesitated on this one. He wanted to say yes, but... it has been a long time. Maybe they still were, but he wasn't about to go around and claim something that might not be true. "I... think so. But a lot can change in a decade."

"You come from the island right? The one in the sky?"

Knuckles nodded.

"What is it called?"

"Angel Island. Although some people call it Floating Island. Personally, I prefer the first one."

"What's it like living in the sky?"

"I don't live in the sky. I just live on an island that happens to be in the sky."

"Oh."

A small period of silence fell between them, of which Knuckles was incredibly grateful. He was sure Amy meant well, but by his ancestors she was annoying.

"Oh, hey. Did you have a crush on Sally when you were kids?"

Knuckles twitched and tried to hide his discomfort. "That's none of your business."

Amy's face lit up and a grin appeared on her lips. "I see. You still like her, don't you?"

That's it! Knuckles had enough of her questions. He turned on her and lifted a balled fist threateningly. "Look, Pinkie, my feelings are my business and no one else's! Got it?!"

Amy let out a short eep and then immediate gave him an innocent look. "Understood, Mister Knuckles."

Knuckles's eye twitched briefly as he tried to comprehend her thought process. Giving up, he lowered his fist with a soft sigh. "I'm sorry... Amy, was it? I've just had a long day."

"It's okay. A lot of the Freedom Fighters think I'm kind of annoying. Hard to believe isn't it?"

Knuckles didn't answer and followed Amy until she stopped him in front of a door labelled #13.

"Here we go, Mister." She opened the door and revealed the dim, dusty interior. "It's a little rustic, but I think Vanilla will have it cleaned up for you starting tomorrow."

Knuckles pushed past the hedgehog gently and took a quick look around. There was an old wooden desk that appeared to made of elm in one corner and a lamp sitting on the back corner to the left, away from the wall. On the other side, there was a small cot with plain white sheets that looked untouched for what must of been years. Beside that, there was a small beside table with another lamp sitting on it. The thing he noticed most was the lack of windows in the small, cell-like quarters. He turned back to the female hedgehog. "It's fine. I don't intend to stay for long anyways."

Amy bowed slightly. "Well, _mi casa es su casa_. Or something like that."

"Thanks."

Amy turned as if to leave, and then paused to close the door and speak one last sentence. "Good night, Knuckles. Maybe you'll have dreams about Sally, eh?"

Knuckles's eyes widened in sudden fit of agitation, but didn't get a chance to reply before Amy closed the door behind her. 'Annoying doesn't begin to cover it,' he thought sourly. He shook his head in distaste as he sat down on the edge of the bed. What Amy didn't know was that he did have dreams about Sally every once in a while. It was a fact he wasn't proud of, but she was the only female he had known aside from his mother and the spirit of the emerald, but neither really counted anyhow. Naturally, the started rather innocently, but when he hit puberty a couple years ago, the context of his fantasies took a sudden turn.

He tried to force the memory out of his head, but despite his best efforts, they bubbled to the surface of his mind. One in particular rose above the rest. It was the first such one he had when he was around twelve.

It began rather innocently. He and Sally were at the spring that the two had enjoyed swimming in when they were around six or so. The difference was, Sally was much older, around his own age and she was leading the way to their secret swimming hole. For some reason, she was already scantily clad in what appeared to be a simple gossamer gown. She looked over her shoulder to look at him with a playful grin, not unlike hers when she was younger. "C'mon, Knuckles, the water's nice."

She removed her gown and stepped into the pool. Knuckles recalled feeling a kind of euphoria he was not used to, the sensation was so intense he didn't feel his limbs moving towards the pool edge and climbing in after her. What seemed to a simple children's game eventually turned sultry when the chipmunk swam closer to him and pressed her body against his own. Her hot breath washed over him and felt like he had no control. The only thing he could do was bring her into a kiss, an act he had first experienced with that very same girl years earlier. It was at that time that Knuckles became aware of the female body and could be aroused by it.

However, he never got to that stage. He always woke up just as things got steamy and discovered to his confusion an unusual lump under his covers. When he asked his father about it, the older echidna was rather unhelpful. He just told Knuckles that he needed to control his impluses better and left it at that. Knuckles sighed and shook his head once to clear his mind of his troubling thoughts. He could never let Sally or anyone else know about those kinds of fantasies. No doubt it would only make him seem weird and creepy. That was something he could not live with if Sally found out.

Fortunately, he did find better control of his dreams. They still happened, but not as frequently. Staring up at his ceiling, Knuckles lay in silence and darkness. Despite his exhaustion, sleep eluded him. His concentration should be focused on finding the shards of the Master Emerald, he knew perfectly well, but his musing about meeting Sally again after all these years preoccupied his tired mind.

'What's happened since I last saw her? Why is she living in bunker like this rather than the castle? And who is this Eggman? What does he want?'

Knuckles sighed and closed his eyes. Perhaps the answers would come in the morning, but there was only one way to find out.

* * *

 **Author's Note II:** Alright, so yeah, we already see some hints at KnuxAlly and SonAlly, but neither of these are major parts to the story in-progress. I'm just kind of setting the stage for some drama later down the road. Anyways, what are your thoughts, dear readers? I'm always happy to read comments, even if they aren't exactly praising. The next update should be up by Sunday. Laters, TheEpicTales.


	3. Chapter 2

**Somewhere In Chaos:**

 **Author's Note I:** So begins Knuckles's first day with the Knothole Freedom Fighters. What new experiences face him today? With Amy as his guide, anything is possible.

* * *

 **Chapter 2:**

A soft knock interrupted Knuckles's well-deserved sleep, causing the echidna's eyes to snap open and for him to shoot upright. For a brief moment, Knuckles forgot where he was and his basic instincts kicked in. Only two moments later, he realized that he was still at the underground base that Sally and her rebels resided in. Relaxing, the echidna climbed out of the cot he had spent the night in and answered the door. On the other side he recognized the hedgehog from last night waiting for him.

'I didn't ask for a wake-up call,' he thought quietly.

"Mornin', sleepyhead! Sally wants you to join her for breakfast. C'mon, I'll show you the way to the mess hall," she chirped happily before turning on her heel and cheerily doing a half-skip down the hall.

Knuckles blinked blankly and then followed the pink mobian, closing the door behind him.

Thankfully, the female hedgehog didn't stop for idle chatter with him. A few turns and a couple dozen feet brought them to the main hall that he had reunited with Sally the prior night. Amy didn't slow her pace in the slightest, although her bouncy walk gradually weakened into a brisk walk. Leading him wordlessly across the large room, Amy guided the way to another archway that opened up into a large dining room. Knuckles glanced quickly around the chamber, noting the large, rectangular table in the center and the benches fixated around it. He also casually noted that a few of the individuals he had met earlier were already up and seated along certain places at the table. He didn't know most of their names by memory yet, but there was the fox and coyote placed on opposite sides of the table, with the coyote being the one nearest to Knuckles. His eyes settled upon Sally at the head of the table who gave him a friendly grin when he walked in.

Amy turned and nodded slightly towards Knuckles. "Alright, this is where I leave you, Knuckles, sir. I'll just be in the kitchen helping Vanilla and Cream with the cooking and serving. In the meantime, why don't you go say 'hi' to Princess Sally?" The hedgehog finished her sentence with a conspiratory wink and flounced off before Knuckles could respond.

Heading for the only familiar face in the area, Knuckles approached the mobian princess, who spoke cheerfully as he drew near. "Good morning, Knux. Did you sleep well?"

Knuckles settled into a seat on Sally's right side. "Well enough, I suppose."

Sally placed her hand on top of his. "Let me just say how glad I am that you decided to come back with Sonic and Tails yesterday. We could really use your help, if you're willing."

Knuckles grunted. "It's not like I really had a choice."

Sally's face clouded up with concern. "What do you mean?"

Knuckles looked at her blue eyes with his intense violet ones. "The Master Emerald is in pieces and my island is probably resting somewhere at the bottom of the Mobian Ocean."

Sally leaned forward. "Hm, well, Sonic wasn't very thorough on his report. Although, that has never been his strong suit, so why don't you fill me in on the details?"

Knuckles shrugged. "Alright. So, I wake up about three days ago to find a giant hunk of metal crashing down on my home. I went to investigate, discovered the one you call Eggman, and he convinced me that he was a scientist and that he had arrived to figure out what the object on my island was. I didn't have a reason not to believe him and then he told me about a certain blue hedgehog and his orange friend would be on their way too, intent on stealing the emerald in order to power the device that they had created. And long story short, I confronted Sonic and him," he said, pointing towards Tails, "they found their way past my traps and ended up at the shrine despite my best efforts. Then Eggman proved himself a traitor and deceiver by stealing my emerald for himself. Sonic and I chased him down, boarded the ship and completely wrecked it. However, in the battle, Eggman tried to flee with the Master Emerald again, so... I shattered it. The good news is, it's out of his hands, but the problem is, it's out of mine too. At least," he added, narrowing his eyes slowly, "for the time being."

Sally nodded quietly, digesting his side of the story. "So, just to make sure I heard everything correctly... you broke the Master Emerald? With your bare hands?"

Knuckles nodded. "As a last resort, but... yes."

Sally appeared thoughtful for a moment. "I guess that means you're going to go hunting for the shards then."

Knuckles looked slightly hesitant, before bowing his head regrettably. "It's my duty, Princess."

The two remained silent for a few moments before Sally spoke up again. "When do you plan to leave?"

"Probably within the next couple of days."

Sally looked up at him and gave him another friendly smile. "Well, until then, we'll be glad for any help we can get from you."

Knuckles let a small, uncertain smile cross his face. "I'm not sure what I can do, but I'll do what I can, Princess."

"First rule, Knuckles, don't call me 'Princess', call me Sally or 'Sal'. Second, always follow rule number one."

Knuckles chuckled. "Fair enough... Sally."

At about that moment, a few more Freedom Fighters trickled in, such as the strange rabbit he had noticed yesterday and a large purple walrus. Knuckles only spared the two of them a moment's glance before turning back to his conversation with Sally. "Now, you told me you would explain what's been going on since our last meeting?"

Sally didn't look thrilled to talk about it, more resigned, in fact. "It's a long story, but I guess I can give you the abbreviated version."

Knuckles sat forward and waited for Sally to begin.

"Alright, you remember the Great War our parents were talking about during their last couple of visits?"

Knuckles nodded. "Sure. The kingdoms of Acorn, Mercia, and the Southern Baronies were declaring war on the Overlanders over some stupid territory dispute."

"It's quite a bit more complicated than that, but the important thing about it is that it was during this war that our kingdom met Eggman for the first time. He was a great scientist from the United Federation who 'disagreed' with his home country's political and military stances, so he defected from them to aid us during the war. As it turns out, the Overlanders actually exiled him and his nephew for their war crimes. His most terrible invention was the Roboticizer. It was constructed to transform flesh into plastic and metal to create robotic replicas of the ones placed in the chamber. The androids are completely under his control and very dangerous. He was building an army under his government's nose and did the same to ours.

"Initially, after the war was finished and the Acorn Concordant signed, Eggman appeared to be a mobian hero. That is until he turned the machines he had built and designed for us against our very kingdom. In less than a day, he captured our capital and forced my family into hiding. Well..." here, Sally appeared rather depressed and Knuckles felt a pang of sympathy for his former childhood friend, "those of us who escaped." She looked up. "If it hadn't of been for Sonic and Rosie, I probably wouldn't of survived the coup."

"Where's your father?"

"I wish I knew. I believe Eggman's keeping him alive for some reason, but we haven't found anything to prove that my father's still alive."

"And your mother?"

Sally shrugged. "Supposedly, she and my brother died in a plane crash caused by Overlander mortars." She looked up. "A few unidentified echidnas found the wreckage and proclaimed no survivors. You wouldn't know anything about that... would you?"

Knuckles shook his head. "No. Why?"

"I thought a few of them might be connected to you and Locke in some way."

Both mobains fell silent, reflecting sadly about each other's misfortunes. 'How did so much happen without me knowing anything about it?' Knuckles asked himself silently. At last, he now had an answer for Sally didn't return to his island, but now he wasn't sure if he had wanted an answer in the first place. At length, a thought occurred to him. He glanced at the rabbit sitting between Tails and Antoine. He once again found his attention drawn to her arm and legs. Something about them unsettled him and he decided to ask about them.

"Hey, so... what's up with the rabbit over there? She looks as if one of those robots had sex with a mobian and she was the child."

Sally's face flickered briefly in barely controlled anger. "Shush! Not so loud, I don't want you to let her hear you talking like that."

Knuckles looked in surprise at Sally. "Sorry. Did I cross some sort of line?"

Sally's took a calming breath and sighed. "No.. well, yes. But I can understand why you'd be curious." She paused. "Bunnie is... a special case. You see, Robotnik had her selected for Roboticization and Sonic barely managed to save her from that awful fate. Rosie wasn't sure she'd make it, but Bunnie's a fighter. She pulled through and slowly adjusted to her new look. Still... she's sensitive about it, even if she doesn't let it show. So try to **not** be an ass and don't bring it up to her."

Knuckles nodded solemnly. "I'm sorry. I won't bring it up again."

A few moments later, Sonic appeared around the corner with a broad grin plastered on his face. "Mornin', everybody!" he chirped happily, and then his gaze fell on Sally and Knuckles sitting beside each other and his smile faltered slightly. Zipping over to Sally's left side, the hedgehog settled into the bench on the opposite side of Knuckles. "Wassup?" he asked in a casual tone.

Neither Sally nor Knuckles answered and Sonic quickly grew bored. He turned his vision over to the fox beside him. "What about you, Tails?"

"I'm doing fine," the fox replied, shifting closer to the hedgehog.

Another moment later, a trio of mobian females emerged from the kitchen carrying several dishes. "Ah, here comes the grub," commented Sonic. The trays were set down and the mobian females took their own places, along Knuckles's side of the table. To his moderate dismay, Amy decided to take the seat closest to him.

Once everyone was settled properly, all of the assembled rebels dug in.

* _Later_ *

After the talking and eating died down to an acceptable point, Sally rose and gently clinked the edge of her fork against her glass until all eyes present were turned on her. "Alright, men. We have a very narrow window of time before Eggman recovers from his latest loss. If we're going to strike when he's weakest, the time is now. Rotor, Tails, I want the two of you to make sure the Tornado is in peak condition for the upcoming raid." The walrus and fox nodded. "Antoine, Bunnie, the two of you are tasked with making sure that you are ready for combat, if need be. I expect both of you to practice your skills and repair your equipment."

"Aye, ma'am," replied Antoine the coyote.

"Lastly, Sonic, you and I are going to do some scouting and figure out where this strike is going to take place."

"Fine," mumbled Sonic, not looking all that happy about being deployed again so swiftly.

"Erm, Sally, what am I going to do?" asked Knuckles.

The chipmunk turned to him. "Don't worry, Knux, I'll have something for you to do when we actually launch our attack. In the meantime, Amy can give you a tour of the HQ and introduce you properly to our crew."

"Yay! I'll do my best, Sally!" piped up Amy happily.

'Grreaattt,' thought Knuckles sarcastically.

"As for Vanilla and Cream..." continued Sally, "You two just keep doing what you're doing."

Vanilla nodded graciously. "Come, Creamie, let's clean up," she said quietly to her daughter who jumped up and began aiding her mother in gathering the dirty plates off the table.

"If there are no questions then let's get started," finished Sally.

Wordlessly, the group of mobians excused themselves and moved off to complete their assignements for the day. Sally and Sonic departed quickly and soon, Knuckles and Amy were left alone with Vanilla and Cream heading off to the kitchen once more.

"Wow, a whole day for me to show you around, isn't that great?!" exclaimed Amy excitedly. Knuckles didn't respond. He didn't trust himself to do so. "Well, let's not just sit around here, I've got a lot to show you. Oh! And you're just going to love our friends!" Without waiting for a reply, Amy grabbed Knuckles by the arm and immediately lead him to the kitchen.

Knuckles plodded along somewhat reluctantly and wondered why Sally couldn't of sent someone else to show him around. Maybe that other rabbit girl. Bunnie, was her name? He blushed lightly when he realized he was already memorizing her name before even meeting her properly. Before he had time to rationalize it, Amy had him in the kitchen room. A quick glance about told him that the kitchen was one of the nicer places in the building. Bright, white tile walls lined the entire interior and two counters lined the area. One was in the center and was shorter than the one pressed up against the wall. A large stove sat evenly in the center of the structure and had a cutting surface for one side and a sink on the other.

Along the wall with the counter, a larger, dishwashing sink was set into the countertop, sparkling clean and made from chrome. A refrigerator and freezer, one full-size version of each, were tucked into a corner nearest to him and Amy near the entrance. And all the way on the other side of the long room was a simple oak door that must have lead to a pantry. The two rabbits, Vanilla and Cream, were already busy at work in front of the sink. The elder rabbit scrubbed the dishes and the younger one, standing up on a stool, rinsed them off before stacking them in a rack to dry.

"So, this is the ki-"

"I know what it is," interrupted Knuckles.

Amy's eyes widened for an instant as her feelings were hurt. "Well, fine then, Mr. Grouchy. Maybe I won't show you around, if you're going to be like that!" she huffed, crossing her arms and turning her head away in a pout.

Knuckles sighed. "Look, I didn't mean it like that. But I'm not an idiot."

Amy held her expression for another moment longer before making a show of forgiving him. "Apology accepted. Now this is Vanilla," she said, pointing towards the older rabbit. "Mrs. Rabbit! Say 'hi' to Knuckles," she called out to her.

The rabbit looked over her shoulder and ceased her chore long enough to turn around and approach the echidna, wiping her hands dry with a clean, white hand-towel. "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Knuckles," she said politely, offering him a friendly handshake.

"Mrs. Rabbit, is it?" he asked, taking her hand into his own and shaking it gently. "I take it you're married then?"

Vanilla winced slightly. "No, actually. Not for quite some time now."

"Oh." Knuckles released her hand and looked moderately ashamed of his social blunder. "My apologies."

"It's quite alright. I've had some time to adjust to it. Plus, I still have my daughter to look after. That, and the Freedom Fighters keep me quite busy. I thank them for giving me and Creamie here a place to stay during the war. Seeing how our cottage was burned down and all that."

"You lost your home?"

Vanilla nodded. "About a year ago. But we still have our lives, so I'm thankful for that." The mature rabbit turned her gaze temporarily to her daughter. "Come over here and say hello to the newest member, darling."

"Okay, Mommy!" replied Cream, hopping off the stool and scurrying up to Knuckles. "Hi there! Are you some kind of hedgehog, Mister?"

Knuckles smiled and let out a small laugh. "No, I'm afraid not. I'm an echidna. Completely different. What's your name?"

"Cream the Rabbit, sir!"

"Well, then. I'm pleased to meet you, Miss Cream." He reached out with his hand and playfully ruffled the small rabbit's headfur.

"Are you going to be staying with us?"

Knuckles's smile faded, but only by a few noticeable degrees. "Maybe. We'll see, won't we?"

Vanilla spoke up again. "Well, Cream and I still have a considerable amount of chores to still do, so we should get back to them. Until next time, Mr. Knuckles," she bidded the echidna.

"Er, wait. Do you two need any help with the chores?"

"No, I believe we've got it, but thank you regardless. Perhaps you should go meet my niece, Bunnie. She won't admit it, but she's been dying to meet you. Oops. I've said too much."

"Huh?" asked Knuckles, but he was unable to inquire further before Amy lead him off again.

"I think she's just curious about you. I know I am," chirped Amy, guiding him back to the mess hall and towards the back area of the building. Knuckles shook his head to dismiss the thoughts and once again allowed himself to be dragged off.

* * *

 **Author's Note II:** Alright, we'll leave off here, but I'll be back soon with more. Stay tuned.

~TheEpicTales


	4. Chapter 3

**Somewhere In Chaos:**

 **Author's Note I:** Knuckles's first day continues as he meets each rebel face-to-face. How will the other Freedom Fighters react to the stranger in their midst? Will Knuckles's reconsider his stance on duty and honor? Or will Amy annoy the hell out of our hero before his journey to self-discovery has truly began? And finally, will I stop asking questions I know the answers to and actually begin writing? All of those questions and more will be answered within! Enjoy.

* * *

 **Chapter 3:**

"Alright, Mr. Echidna! This here is our tech lab!"

Amy had Knuckles standing in the entrance of another large-ish, white tiled room, but this one had several small tables with a handful of cogs and wheels sitting atop them in organized heaps. The other wall on the north side, a large, flat-screen computer monitor dominated a large portion of the otherwise barren surface. Below it was a simple keyboard and flash drive inserted into a USB plug-in beside what appeared to be a mouse.

Besides himself and Amy, the tech lab seemed empty.

"Rotor and Tails tend to work a lot in here, inventing new gadgets and whatnot. It's also used by Sally as a battle plan station. And here we have NICOLE," she added, pointing towards the computer screen.

Knuckles's expression looked a little confused. "Amy... there's nobody there."

Amy gave him a mischievous grin. "Oh, isn't there?" With a simple flick of her wrist, Amy flipped the switch on the desk and brought the machine to life. After much humming and whirring, the screen quickly flickered on and revealed a fairly typical home screen. Knuckles raised a questioning eyebrow, wondering what exactly the female hedgehog was trying to prove. "NICOLE," stated Amy coolly, "please welcome our newest guest."

Knuckles was caught a little off-guard when the shape of a digital mobian blinked onto the screen.

"Greetings," the AI spoke softly, in a heavily electronic, yet feminine voice.

Knuckles could do little more than gap and stare in utter surprise. From what he could gather, the girl on the screen appeared to be a female lynx covered in brown and black fur and wearing a violet colored toga. Small black marking dotted her face and ears. And finally, her hair was short and braided with beads of colors alternating between blue and orange. Her eyes were a bright, vivid green that invoked feelings of energy and vast knowledge in the echidna. In other words, she was gorgeous, perhaps the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. It was so intricately detailed that Knuckles immediately thought that she was another person, like... a recording or live transmission. He stepped up beside Amy without even realizing it. Once he could manage to master speech again, he quietly spoke to Amy without tearing his eyes from the screen. " **Who** is that?"

Amy giggled. "That's NICOLE, silly; I just told you that."

"But you said she was some kind of computer. That's a real person... Isn't it?"

Amy decided to let the AI explain it to him.

"I am an advanced Artificial Intelligence system, or 'AI' for short, created by the esteemed Dr. Ellidy, friend of the Royal Family and handed down to my current owner, Princess Sally Acorn of -"

Knuckles cut her off. "So, you're really just a computer then?"

The virtual lynx nodded. "Essentially, yes. However, I am far more advanced than a mere calculator." The AI paused and gave him a sheepish smile. "Even though **that** is one of my primary functions."

"So you're not real?" he asked again, not quite able to wrap his mind around the concept.

NICOLE hesitated. "That would depend on your definition of 'real'. Do I exist? In a sense, that would be yes. But am I flesh and bone? No."

Knuckles shook his head. All of this was just confusing him. "Can't you just give me a straight answer?"

NICOLE thought for a moment. "Let me put it this way," she began slowly, "I think, therefor I am."

"What in the name of Chaos does that mean?"

"It means if I believe that I exist, than I do."

Knuckles gave up. He turned to Amy. "What kind of trick are you pulling on me?"

Amy struggled to keep her sides from shaking as she answered. "It's no trick, Mr. Knuckles. She really is a computer and she's really smart."

"What exactly does 'she' do?"

"Well, she's tied into the entire main frame for the entire building, so she acts as a security monitor, communication base, data analyst, and primary hacking system. She's also tied into, and based out of a small handheld computer that Sally carries with her. As long as there's a signal, she can hack her way into anything. Including Eggman's memory banks across his empire."

Knuckles didn't understand a single word she was saying, so decided to simply abandon the entire conversation. However, NICOLE piped up. "From what I gathered the previous night, you and Sally have some kind of relationship, yes?"

Knuckles reluctantly nodded. "Yeah. And?"

"I was curious as to whether you and the princess were or are in a committed relationship."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Are you the princess's... boyfriend, I believe is the term."

Knuckles flushed rather quickly and a sudden anger boiled up from the AI's touching of his nerve. "N-no!"

NICOLE appeared mildly disappointed. "Oh. I must have been mistaken."

"Very mistaken!" he affirmed, loudly.

"I hope you will forgive my transgression. After that I hug, I assumed -"

Knuckles looked rather agitated, so Amy tactfully changed the subject. "Anyways, this is Knuckles. He'll be helping us out from now on; right, Mr. Knuckles?"

Knuckles backed away a step or two. "Maybe. We'll see. Right now, I just want my emerald back."

The AI was unable to process the right kind of response, so she simply bowed slightly. "Well, if you do help Sally and her friends, I'm sure you will prove to be a valuable asset."

"Ok, then, that's enough of this for now," said Amy, flicking the switch back off and shutting down the computer. The hedgehog took Knuckles's hand again. "How about we go meet some actual mobians now?"

Knuckles had to admit, that sounded much more suitable to him, even though he noted with disdain that his escort didn't have a sense of personal space at this point. "Fine. Let's just get this over with.

* * * _Tails's Workshop_ * * *

The next location that Amy dragged her grudging companion to was the workshop, an offshoot of the hangar in which Tails and Rotor held the Tornado while not in use. Both the fox and walrus were hard at work, apparently taking apart the engine on a sturdy metal cart. Amy called out to them, but only Tails looked up from his work.

"Oh, hey, Amy. Knuckles," he added, nodding warily in the echidna's direction. Knuckles didn't really blame the fox for his mistrust, after all, he did viciously attack both him and Sonic on a number of occasions. "Still showing him around then?" asked the pint-sized mobian, looking back to Amy.

"Yep! We just finished introducing him to NICOLE," she explained.

Tails cracked a small grin. "So how did that go?"

"Uh, well, not very well, I think," admitted Amy. She sidled over to the younger mobian and whispered quietly in his large ear. "Knuckles didn't seem to understand the whole computer thing."

Tails didn't look surprised. "Yeah, I kinda figured that. He isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed."

"You talking about me?" growled Knuckles, overhearing the fox's last comment.

"Uh, no, of course not!" the mobian quickly answered. He reached out a hand. "I'm Tails, by the way. But you should already know that."

Knuckles suspiciously took the younger one's hand. He didn't really trust anyone smarter than him, especially when they acted like it.

"And this is Rotor," continued Tails, freeing his hand to clap the walrus on the shoulder. The purple one gave a simple wave towards the echidna before resuming his work.

"Not much one for words I see," remarked Knuckles, "I like him already."

"So, Tails and Rotor are, like, geniuses. They can build just about anything from just anything, with the proper tools, of course," explained Amy. "In fact, Tails himself built and designed most of the plane over there. You should have seen it when we first discovered it here. Tails spent almost a week getting it back into operating condition and continued to add new modifications to it, such as the Chaos Reader installed into the dash which allowed us to track down your island in the first place. Neat, isn't it?"

Knuckles shrugged. "Impressive, I suppose." He glanced at the fox. "Exactly how old **are** you?"

"Eleven, sir."

Knuckles internally frowned, although he kept his outward appearance indifferent. The fox was five years his junior and yet apparently knew more about machines and computers than he did.

"I think Sally calls him a... 'prodigy', I believe," added Amy. "But we just call him a 'wizkid'."

"So why do they call you 'Tails'?" asked Knuckles.

Tails flicked his twin tails. "I'll let you have two guesses."

Knuckles moved on. "Is that your real name?"

Tails shook his head. "That would be 'no', Mr. Echidna. My actual name is Miles Prower, but I prefer Tails."

"So, uh, what else do the two of you do besides tinker?" asked Knuckles.

Tails looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, I usually accompany Sonic in whatever task Sally has arranged for him and Rotor acts as our muscle from time to time. But," the fox added, looking up at the echidna, "I estimate that you're at least twice as strong as he is. In fact, I'm not sure how you managed to knock the Chaos Emeralds out of Super Sonic in the first place. Even missile impacts aren't strong enough to do that."

A slow smirk crossed the red one's face. "Shall I tell you?"

Tails nodded. "That would be interesting to know."

"Well, you clearly don't know anything about the Brotherhood or my tribe's history, do you?"

Tails shook his head.

"My people have been the sworn protectors of the Emerald for countless generations. Sixteen or so, in fact."

Tails considered pointing out that 'sixteen generations' isn't countless, but wisely decided to let the echidna proceed without interruption.

"The chosen ones to be charged with such a task were my ancestors, starting with Edmund, the first Guardian. And thus the Brotherhood was created. Since then, each guardian has passed down the title and responsibility to each of his descendants, and our connection to the Emerald grew over time. Each Guardian has the ability to tap into the Emerald and add its power to his own. We also have the ability to negate Chaos Energy using the Master Emerald as a focus point, of sorts. This is also why we can sense when Chaos Emeralds are nearby or when the Master Emerald itself is in danger. There are also some other benefits, but I'm not going to share all of them with you any time soon."

Tails mulled over the information that Knuckles had just given him. "So... what you're saying is that you 'negated' Sonic's Super form by using the Master Emerald?"

"In a nutshell."

"So why did you punch him? Does the negation require physical contact?"

"Well, yes. But a simple tap would have sufficed. I just like hitting things."

Amy, who had been oddly quiet up until this point suddenly got rather bored and decided to finish her task. Grabbing his arm, the hedgehog lead Knuckles forcefully away from Tails. "Oh, well. We've got more people to meet. You and Tails can talk more later, but now, I want to introduce you to Antoine."

"But I-" protested Knuckles briefly.

"Later," repeated Amy firmly.

Tails gave a short, awkward wave as the echidna and hedgehog pair departed his workshop, before turning back to Rotor. "Ok, then, Rotor. Now... let's take a look at the motor. I believe one of Eggman's bullets might have grazed the side of it yesterday."

* * * _Outside of the Great Forest_ * * *

A pair of light brown hands gripped a pair of binoculars as a set of aquamarine eyes peered through them. From her vantage point, Sally could discern several automatons of Eggman's creations moving about in a stiff, robot-like fashion as they patrolled the fatory where more machines were being built.

"So, how many do I have to deal with?" asked Sonic, crouched down beside her.

The chipmunk was silent for a moment before she slowly answered. "At least twenty or so, from what I can make out. There's probably more inside."

Sonic smirked. "Ya know, one would think ol' Egghead would guard his precious factories more carefully. I could easily take out at least thirty SWATbots before breaking a sweat."

Sally lowered the spying device as she turned her gaze to the hedgehog. "Especially since he just received a crippling defeat recently." She pursed her lips. "I don't like it. A factory like this should be crawling with 'bots right now."

Sonic shrugged. "Maybe he's withdrawing. Who knows? The war might be over soon."

Sally shook her head. "No, Robotnik isn't the type to give up so meekly. We should take a look at some more bases deeper in. I've got a bad feeling about all of this."

* * * _Freedom HQ_ * * *

Sometime after leaving Tails' workshop, Amy and her reluctant companion found Antoine sitting on the stump of what used to be an old tree. The coyote was busy tending to his sword, sliding a whetstone down the length of the blade, honing its edge with precision. "Hey, Ant!" called Amy.

The coyote looked up and watched as Amy and Knuckles marched over towards him. Lowering his eyes again, the mobian resumed his task as he waited for them to get closer.

At length, Amy and Knuckles stopped a few feet shy of the brown one's position.

" _Salut_ , _mademoiselle_ Amy," greeted the coyote in his strange language.

"To you as well, Mister D'Coolette," replied Amy, "As you probably already know, I'm showing Knuckles around and introducing him to our members."

Antoine nodded. The coyote glanced at Knuckles for a moment, and then, realizing how big and intimidating the echidna looked compared to himself, quickly looked back down. " _Comment allez-vous_ , _Monsieur_ Ca-nuckles?"

Knuckles blinked for a moment and glanced at Amy, who did little more than smile at him. "Come again?" he asked.

"I said, 'how do you do?'," the coyote repeated.

"Oh. Fine, I suppose. And what did you call me?"

"Ca-nuckles. That is your name, is it not?"

"No. It's Knuckles."

"That's what I said, Ca-nuckles."

"Knuckles."

"Ca-nuckles."

"Repeat after me, Knuckles."

"Ca-nuckles," repeated Antoine, somewhat slower.

Knuckles was about to rip his dreadlocks out in frustration. "What is so difficult to understand?! It's KNNN-Uhhh-Kkkk-lllss."

"Ca-nuckles?"

'That's it!' thought Knuckles, rearing back his fist

"Wait!" cried out Amy as she grabbed his arm and held it back. Antoine, on the other hand, glimpsed the motion and had yelped as he jumped up to hide behind the stump.

Knuckles paused and lowered his fist of his own accord when he saw Antoine's instinctive, and rather cowardly behavior. "What are you doing behind there?"

Antoine hesitated. "Er, hiding?" he asked uncertainly.

Knuckles grimaced. "Hm, I wasn't aware Sally let chickens in her ranks."

Antoine's temporary fear was immediately replaced with indignation. "I, sir, am no chicken."

Knuckles made a smug smile as he tucked his arms beside him and flapped them as he began making clucking noises. "Bawk, b-bawk, bawk!"

Amy watched uncomfortably. Surely the display was offensive to certain feathered mobians.

"S-stop it! There's no shame in hiding against a more powerful foe!" stated Antoine firmly.

Knuckles ignored him and continued making the obscene noises.

"I am a member of the Royal Guard and will not be mocked in such a manner!" shouted Antoine, now thoroughly roused. Brandishing his blade, Antoine stepped closer towards Knuckles with the point aimed straight towards the echidna.

Knuckles in response, abandoned his taunting and let his smirk grow. "Oh, so not only does Sally let yellow-bellies in with the rebels, but so does the Royal Guard?"

Antoine's swordtip faltered and shortly thereafter, Antoine let it fall. "It... pains me to admit it... but I was never the fearless warrior my father wanted, so he... sent me to the Guard in hopes that they would toughen me up." The coyote mobian sat back down on his stump. "Even now, I am as a... how do you say? A 'scaredy-cat'." He looked up at Knuckles. "It may be hard to believe, but I was once even more spineless before this whole civil war business began. I escaped with Sally when _ze_ Eggman seized control of the city, and not by my own efforts, I shamefully add." His eyes narrowed slightly. "But since that day, I have sworn I will stand by her no matter what. Even if that means putting myself in danger... I would do it gladly."

"And has any situation forced you to make good on that promise?"

Antoine made a unstable smile. "Thankfully, not yet. _Monsieur_ Sonic is decent ally. Perhaps a bit arrogant, but whatever it takes, eh?"

Knuckles shrugged. "If you say so. Personally, I think he's an idiot, but -"

Knuckles didn't get to finish his sentence before something large, heavy, and painful slammed down on his head. Pain shot through his body as he instinctively grabbed his head and let out an angry and startled shout. Whipping around, he saw Amy standing grimly with a large hammer in her hands. "What was that for?!"

"Sonic is not an idiot!" she stated firmly, and then turned her baleful gaze to Antoine who, in turn, flinched and held up his hands pleadingly. "And he's not arrogant. He's wonderful! That's what he is!"

"Where did you even get that?" asked Knuckles. At the moment, that seemed somewhat more important than why she hit him, not that he had time to think about it. She certainly didn't have it on her before they left the mess hall, nor after they left Tails's workshop.

Amy didn't answer him and stared a few moments longer at the terrorized coyote and confused echidna before she smiled once more and let the hammer dissipate into smoke. "Okay then. C'mon, Knuckles, there's one last person you should meet."

"Wa-" Knuckles began, as Amy grabbed his arm once more and dragged him off.

Antoine watched the pair depart and let out a soft sigh of relief. He should be more careful in choosing his words about Sonic while Amy is anywhere within a five-mile radius, he reasoned.

* * * _Elsewhere_ * * *

"This is the sixth base we've located and still nothing!" exclaimed Sally, looking through her binoculars once more.

"That's not true," chimed in Sonic. "They're all guarded."

"But not as heavily as they should be. This even less than there usually is."

"So?"

Sally lowered her long-range field gear and rolled over onto her back before sitting up. "I don't like it. Not one bit. I'm beginning to think he might be planning an ambush for us."

"Why's that?"

"Because it just makes more sense than Eggman leaving his bases loosely guarded. He knows we'll be confident after our win, so he might be betting on that confidence making us blind to possible dangers. It's perfect."

Sonic shrugged. "I think you're just being paranoid. We've already beat him once, and we can do it again. Here, why don't I take a closer look and I'll let you know if Robuttnik has any other robots he's not telling us about?"

"No! Sonic, stand down! That's an order!" demanded Sally as Sonic leapt to his feet to and sped down the hill. "Dammit, Sonic, be careful," she hissed as she hastily brought the vision aids back to her eyes. The chipmunk trailed his pathway and observed the badniks taking notice of the hedgehog's advancement. "Sonic, pull back," she breathed, hoping that somehow he would heed her advice and leave the grounds.

Even from her distance, Sally could hear as the base's alarms whined into life. That by itself was bad, but it got worse when she watched a panel of the building slide back to reveal a large, lethal-looking robot behind it. It wasn't a SWATbot, nor an Egg Pawn... it looked bigger, more heavily armored, and more deadly. 'What is that?' she wondered.

She watched as Sonic himself saw the robot and shrugged. The hedgehog grounded his feet and leapt up into a homing attack. 'Sonic, don't!'

Too late. The droid reacted with surprising swiftness and shot a small projectile at the hedgehog's curled up form. As soon as it made contact, a surge of electricity exploded around him and Sonic fell out of his jump, landing harmlessly a few inches away from the droid's feet in an unconscious heap. Sally dropped the binoculars in horror and disbelief. In the distance, blurry, indistinct forms of badniks gathered around Sonic and carried his body inside the base.

With no other option coming to mind, Sally backed away and turned into a full sprint back towards Knothole and the HQ beyond.

* * * _Freedom HQ_ * * *

Meanwhile, near the Freedom Fighters' home base, Knuckles and Amy sought out the last remaining Freedom Fighter for Knuckles's introduction. They found her a fair distance away from the base, beside a gently flowing creek, evidently practicing some form of martial art. Knuckles grabbed Amy's shoulder and stopped her while he watched the robo-bunny fluidly transition from one posture to the next.

"What's the-" began Amy, before Knuckles muffled her words by placing a gloved hand over her mouth to silence her.

Completely unaware of her audience, the mechanical rabbit made smooth, deliberate gestures with her arms and taking carefully placed steps in a casual display of Knuckles could only describe as physical perfection. Muscles and machine bits worked together to make every movement appear as natural and purposeful as any other mobians. Without even realizing it, the echidna's breath caught in his throat and he was staring with such intensity that he was scarcely even aware of his surroundings or the hedgehog beside him.

However, his reverie was broken by the irrepressible female in his grasp. She squirmed her way free and turned on the echidna. "Hey! What was that all about!" she shouted, balling an angry fist at him. But when the echidna didn't respond or even grace her with a glance, Amy's annoyance factor doubled. "Hey! Are you even listening to me?!" she asked, snapping her fingers in front of his face.

And like that, Knuckles was shocked back to the present and reality. "Huh?" he exclaimed mildly, as if being drawn out of a hypnosis.

"I said, 'why did you gag me like that?!'" Amy reiterated for him.

Knuckles shook his head. "Oh, uh, sorry about that..."

Amy let out a calming breath. "Okay. But what was..." she drifted off when she looked at what Knuckles had been staring at. If such a thing were realistic and not some low-budget cartoon, a light bulb would've flickered to life above her head. "Ohh! I see," she giggled. She nudged her companion in the ribs teasingly. "You've already been smitten by our demolition gal, eh?"

Knuckles turned crimson faced and balled his own fists dangerously. "I- I... **No**!"

Amy shrugged with a smug demeanor. "Whatever ya say, but your secret is safe with me."

"What secret?"

Knuckles nearly jumped out of his fur when he discovered that while his attention was focused on Amy, the rabbit they had been sp-, observing, on had taken notice of them on the hilltop and strutted up to meet them. "S-Secret? Oh, uh, nothing! Nothing at all!" he managed to stammer out.

Amy motioned as if to pipe up, but Knuckles clamped his hand back over the hedgehog's mouth before she could do any more damage. Bunnie gave the two a strange look, but shrugged and held a hand out for Knuckles. "Alright, then. Ah'm Bunnie Rabbot, pleased ta make yer acquaintance, Mistah Knuckles, sir."

Knuckles shakily took her hand, the metallic one since it was the one offered, and gave it a nervous shake. "And you as well, Ms. ... I'm sorry. Did you say 'Rab-bot'?" he asked, placing emphasis on the "bot" portion.

Bunnie pulled her appendage away politely and gave a demure laugh. "Yep. Used ta be pronounced 'bow' but Ah changed it after getting these things," she explained, gesturing towards her robotic legs and arm. "But, please, call me 'Bunnie'."

"And you can call me yours..." mumbled Knuckles before fully realizing what he had just uttered. "I-I mean, call me 'Knuckles', madam."

Fortunately, while the rabbit clearly picked up on his first attempt, she didn't seem to take it too seriously and giggled again as she replied. 'Sweet Chaos,' thought Knuckles, 'her laugh is amazing...'

"So, exactly how long were the two of ya watching me over there?" she asked.

Knuckles blinked and tried to look nonchalant. "Er, not that long. Like, uh, two minutes I'd say."

Amy managed to free herself again. "Yeah, right. It was more like five."

Knuckles shot her the dirtiest look he could muster without letting Bunnie see.

"Ah, well, that's, uh, disconcerting," commented Bunnie.

Knuckles turned his attention back to the rabbit. "Oh, no. It wasn't, like, weirdly or anything. Um, what kind of style was that?"

"Tai-chi," the cyborg bunny replied, "It helps with mah balance and coordination skills."

Knuckles scratched his chin. "I thought it looked familiar. Where did you learn it?"

"I had a sensei back in the Baronies, before the war. Musta been, gosh, six, seven years ago. Ya see, when I was younger, I had a problem with my balance and mah doctor suggested that mah parents enroll me in one of them classes. It really helped, so Ah've kept it up. Especially since the... incident with ol' Robotnik's Roboticizer."

Knuckles nodded, showing interest without having to fake it. Refreshing really. "And what do you do for the 'team', I guess you'd call it?"

Bunnie grinned. "Heavy weapons expert. Ya see, since Eggman's Roboticizer turns normal mobians into shock troops, each arm is configured ta transform into a gun or cannon at will. Mine turned out ta be a laser cannon. It's pretty useful actually."

"I'll bet it is," commented Knuckles. He honestly didn't know what exactly the cyborg-rabbit was talking about, but he didn't mind that at all. Just listening to her melodic voice and cute Southern Belle accent was enchanting enough for the red echidna. After all, all he had ever known of the outside world aside from his father's many academic teachings was from Sally over ten years ago. Even so, he had to keep himself from staring too intently and at least try to understand portions of their conversation. NICOLE had confused him, Sonic annoyed him, that coyote fellow with the other accent was little more than disappointing, and he already knew Sally, so Bunnie was thus far the only mobian that truly fascinated him.

After a few moments, Bunnie stopped talking and Knuckles snapped to attention. "Hm? What's up?"

Amy nudged him. "It's lunchtime, bub. C'mon, let's head back to base and Sally and Sonic should join us shortly."

"Oh," murmured Knuckles, "O.K. then."

The echidna followed slowly behind Amy while Bunnie brought up the rear. This gave the echidna a moment to reflect on the last six minutes or so. Jeez, he must have came off like a complete idiot, nodding and staring with a blank look on his face the entire time he and the rabbit had been talking. Honestly, he didn't quite know why it mattered to him. Usually he didn't give a single thought to how others perceived him, and yet... he suddenly felt like a fool. Completely out of his environment. Yes, that must be it. Reverse altitude sickness. Spending so much time with his head in the clouds must have made him intolerant towards being down-to-earth. That made sense... right?

* * * _A little bit later_ * * *

Knuckles, Amy, and Bunnie arrived in the Mess Hall and found Antoine, Tails, and Rotor already seated. The coyote made the slightest of shivers as Knuckles entered, which the echidna noticed out of the corner of his amethyst-colored eyes. On the other, far-side of the table, Tails and Rotor were hunched together discussing some technical mumbo-jumbo that Knuckles couldn't overhear, not that he would've understood a shred of it anyways. Amy unexpectedly took his hand and lead him over to seat across from Tails and Rotor. Bunnie, on the other hand, departed to partner up with Antoine. Tearing his gaze away from her, Knuckles turned his attention to Amy for a change.

"Vanilla and Cream will be bringing the food here soon. Sonic and Sally should be back sometime after that. In fact," she added, giggling, "knowing Sonic's appetite and sense of smell, it shouldn't be more than a minute or two after the platters are laid out."

Knuckles nodded curtly and tried to focus on the tablecloth in front of him. It was mildly stained with what looked like it might have been sweet-and-sour sauce or maybe barbecue sauce.

Amy, however, wouldn't leave well-enough alone. She nudged him, an annoying habit she was going to pick up it seemed. "So that's pretty much everybody. Of course, I haven't gotten a chance to talk about myself yet. So, uh, where should I begin? Ohh, I don't know... Hm, how about the time Sonic saved me from one of Eggman's traps? It was the first time we met, ya know? And I just knew from the moment we gazed into each other's eyes that we were destined to be together forever, ya know?!" The hedgehog clasped her hands together as she tilted her head and let a dreamy look cross her face. "He was just **so** brave and daring! Oh, he just picked me up in his big strong arms and..."

'Dear Chaos, just kill me now,' thought Knuckles. Somehow, hearing about this girl talk about her crush just wasn't high on his list of enjoyable conversation topics. What he didn't expect, however, was for Amy to suddenly latch onto his arm.

"But now that I mention it, you've got some pretty nice muscles too, Mr. Knuckles," stated the pink hedgehog, gently squeezing his right bicep.

"Um..." drawled the echidna, not quite able to decide how to handle this turn of events.

"Ya know, I'm available tonight... Maybe later we could..." began the pink one coyly.

Fortunately for the echidna, Vanilla and her daughter appeared in the doorway to the kitchen with a few platters of sandwichs and what appeared to be chicken noodle soup. Without much words, the mobians settled in and started their meal. "Oh, darn," said Knuckles in a fakely disappointed tone, as he reached for one such half-sandwich. "Guess it'll have to wait."

Amy noted the echidna's poorly disguised phrase, but didn't say anything. She wasn't really interested in dating him anyways, she just wanted to try and get Sonic jealous. And, she had plenty of time to work it anyways.

Taking a bite, Knuckles noticed the sandwich was ham on whole-wheat with lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, and mustard. He shrugged, he didn't mind ham. But... a thought occured to him. Where exactly did the meat come from? After all, Sonic and Tails rescued several dozen pigs and chickens trapped in Robotnik's machines...

His train of thought was interrupted by Sally bursting into the Mess Hall. The mobians all glanced at her in unison and made various inquisitive looks when they noticed Sonic wasn't with her. Tails spoke up. "Hey, Aunt Sally, where's Sonic?"

The chipmunk dry heaved for a few moments, clearly out of breath. Knuckles cautiously stood up and his face betrayed hints of concern. After a few moments, Sally managed to gasp out, "Sonic's been captured! He's...*huff*... at the Emerald Hill Egg Base."

Tails and Antoine jolted upright while Bunnie and the other two rabbits exchanged worried looks.

"What?!" exclaimed Tails. "We have to rescue him!"

Sally shook her head. "It's too dangerous to rush in without a plan; that's what got him captured in the first place. Antoine, Bunnie, and Tails, meet me in the War Room." Sally turned to Knuckles and mt his gaze. "Knux, I know you just got here, but we need your help. I... need your help."

The echidna nodded solemnly. "And you'll have it."

* * *

 **Author's Note II:** Okay, so yeah, it's been a while since I last updated. And apologies for that. I actually started this chapter right after publishing the last one, but I didn't get around to finishing it right up until now. Excuses are pretty lame, I know, but writer's block really stinks. I guess it could be summed up as me starting a chapter while I had a great idea on how to write, then falling asleep halfway through, and when I came back, I had no idea where I was going with this particular chapter. So, again, apologies if it's all over the place. Hm, I don't really know what else to say. I might make some minor edits to this later, but for now this is Chapter 3. And Chapter 4 is obviously going to be a rescue mission of some sort. But, for now, this is TheEpicTales, signing out.


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